Research Presentations & Nutrition Supplementations
- Emily Norman
- May 20, 2021
- 4 min read
Throughout the entire internship, I had really been looking forward to the middle of May. Last week, we had our "May Meeting" on UK's campus where the entire Dietetics and Human Nutrition Supervised Practice Program came together (in-person, woohoo!) We spent two days presenting our research presentations and posters, while catching up on each other's internship experiences. Last week was also the finale of our DHN 518 Evaluation of Dietetics Issue & Leadership course. It felt great to see all of our hard work pay off – I am usually nervous when presenting or public speaking, but I felt comfortable presenting to my other peers. We all presented our PowerPoint presentations once to the entire class, and then presented our posters twice to smaller groups of students and one professor. I have attached both my research poster and paper below to take a look at! The DHN 518 course was difficult, but overall rewarding.
Since I am one of the two out-of-state students that came into the UK Dietetic Internship, I didn't know if I'd be able to become familiar or close to the other students at a distance (especially in a pandemic). Fortunately, I was proven wrong. Having a group message with the other interns has been a phenomenal source of support and we have been able to rely on each other for advice and guidance. Some of us got together after Thursday on campus where we went to the Distillery District to eat some well-deserved Goodfellas Pizza. It was relieving to sit down with each other and share all of our extremely different internship experiences, both the ups and downs, of what we've done so far. We have all acquired a variety skills throughout the rotations; It was nice to hear that everyone is going through their own learning journey, just as I am. I am grateful that I have been able to get close to my peers, especially now that I will be going to graduate school with a few of them!
It was great to be back in Lexington for longer than a weekend. I am beyond thrilled to be back for good in just a few weeks to do my community rotation at UK Athletics.
As for what's going on in Madisonville, Kentucky, at Baptist Health Madisonville (BHM), I have been picking up some new projects. This week I have focused on supplemental accuracy on patient trays. Each afternoon I print out the list of patients who should receive supplements, and I go up to their rooms and see if it has been brought on their lunch trays. I ask the patient if that is the flavor they prefer, or if I can get them another flavor. The Patient Dining Associates (PDAs) are decently good at bringing up the supplements, but it is not always accurate. Here is a photo of all the supplemental drinks and ice creams we have at BHM: Magic Cup, Boost (Plus & Glucose Control), Boost Breeze (for clear liquid diets), Novasource and also packets of Juven that the PDAs put into water or other drinks. There are more flavors offered here than seen here, but this is a general look into the BHM refrigerator.
I will be continuing the supplement accuracy project for the next two weeks. Before I leave, I will give the kitchen manager a percentage of accuracy in which the PDAs have received on getting the correct supplement onto the patient's tray – They hope that it will be greater than 95%.
CRDN 4.3 - Conduct clinical and customer service quality management activities.
On Thursday, May 20th, we sampled a new supplement called ProSource Gelatein from the company Medtrition. The Gelatein is offered in three different varieties: Gelatein 20, which is sugar-free, the Gelatein Plus, and the Gelatein Plus with MCT Oil. All of them have 20 grams of protein with varying calories and are appropriate for the Dsyphagia and clear liquid diets.
We were on a Zoom chat with the directors of Medtrition, as they were trying to promote these new supplements. Personally, I think that the Gelateins are a great idea. They are easy to consume and have more protein than most supplements we have here at BHM. The flavors were a tad off; I think there could be some improvements there. My favorite flavors were the Cherry and Pineapple (Gelatein Plus).
The four dietitians, Lexi, and I all tried several different supplements throughout the Zoom "tasting hour," yet the Gelatein was all our favorite one. It was a lot of fun to try all of the flavors! From lime to grape to fruit punch, there was quite a lot of tasting to do. The hospital may adapt these new supplements, but it unsure at the moment.
CRDN 1.3 - Justify programs, products, services and care using appropriate evidence or data.
As some days may seem to have the same routine, it is exciting when we all get to do something new together! Throughout the internship, I've learned that jobs may be monotonous at times, but it takes effort to be creative and try to diversify your day.
I will always attempt to add creativity into my day.
References:
Medtrition. (n.d.). https://medtrition.com/.
Comments